Our View 2: McManus For Selectman
09 May 2018

Harwich

When Harwich voters go to the polls on Tuesday, May 15, they will have to weigh the value of experience against new candidates who have contributed little to municipal government. Our recommendation is to take the experience.

Ed McManus sits on the finance committee and is a member of the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates. He served as a selectman for 11 years, stepping down from the board when he was elected to serve in the assembly to comply with town charter provisions that prohibits selectmen from serving in another elected position.

There are few community members who have contributed as much to the town as McManus. He has lived here for 18 years and served in one capacity or another for 17 of those years. He has served on the housing committee, Brooks Academy Museum Commission, and was co-chairman of the Monomoy Regional High School building committee. He also serves on a Massachusetts Municipal Association committee. Outside of government he has been a long-time president of the Harwich Cranberry Festival and he also serves on the board of directors for Outer Cape Health Services.

His dedication to community is above reproach and the service he has provided over those long years has been exceptional. The Monomoy Regional High School building project speaks to the quality of his service, coming in within the $59.4 million budget and on time. As Harwich faces a number of large projects, the board of selectmen needs someone with a strong history of project oversight and dedicated service to community. Ed McManus is that person.